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Ian Murray insists his Airdrie side will arrive at Celtic Park without any fears ahead of their Scottish Cup fourth round tie.

The former Rangers and Hibs utility man insists his side have ‘genuine belief’ that they can halt Celtic’s incredible domestic cup run.

Murray managed Dumbarton and St Mirren before taking over the Diamonds in October 2018.

The Airdrie boss has asked his players not to be scared ahead of the Saturday evening tie.

He told Not The Old Firm: “There has to be a genuine belief we can go there and get a result.

“You have to have that mentality in football.

“We have to keep that little bit of hope and see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

Murray’s managerial career kicked off at part-time Dumbarton in 2012, when he took the relegation-threatened side to Championship safety in his first season.

Dumbarton improved year on year under Murray and his efforts saw him linked with a host of bigger jobs.

Full-time football beckoned for Murray at St Mirren, however he did not enjoy the same success as he did at The Sons.

The gaffer believes this is an opportunity for his players to show how good they can be, and insists he actually wanted to draw the double treble winners.

“This is probably one of  three or four ties we would have liked, and we got it.

“We all love cup runs and it was vitally important we got to this round to give ourselves the opportunity of getting this tie.”

While Murray may tell his players to approach the tie without any fears, they are sure to be in for a long evening tomorrow night.

22 not out

Since Brendan Rodgers took over at Celtic, they have enjoyed a historic run of results in domestic competitions.

At the moment, Rodgers’ Celtic unbeaten run in cup competitions stands at an impressive 22 games.

In the Scottish Cup, Rodgers has won all 10 games. In fact, no team has taken Celtic to a replay or extra time in any cup tie under Rodgers.

The task facing Airdrie tomorrow is a mammoth one. Murray will be hoping his Diamonds shine bright under the Celtic Park lights.